crazytubepower Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Can I safely play guitar though my speakers...I have a whole amplified rack mount guitar system and my cab is in the shop...so is it safe to do Thanks CTP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 yes, just make sure you don't overload the input signal. The 1/4" out from guitars tends to run a bit hot as far as line-level sources go, so just keep the volume on your guitar down and you'll be fine...if you're going through other electronics, just make sure the volume on the last one isn't cranked. In fact, plug everything in and have the last piece turned all the way down and then gradually increase the signal to a comfortable level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauln Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 NO NO NO NO NO - DO NOT play an elec. guitar through an ordinary amp/speakers, you will overload it and it will sound like crap no matter what. Take my word for it (30+ years lead guitarist) do not ever try to play electric guitar or bass through gear not designed for musical instrument amplification! Six string Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 I'd say go ahead of if you had the Cornscala's built (the LS was basically a PA/theatre cabinet anyway). DON'T DO IT with the KG4's if you want them to last through the week. You'll surely burn up at least the tweeters in a hurry. short answer NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO Be patient, wait for your guitar cabinet to be repaired or borrow a friends. okay? Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 ---------------- On 6/23/2005 4:04:22 AM pauln wrote: NO NO NO NO NO - DO NOT play an elec. guitar through an ordinary amp/speakers, you will overload it and it will sound like crap no matter what. Take my word for it (30+ years lead guitarist) do not ever try to play electric guitar or bass through gear not designed for musical instrument amplification! Six string Paul ---------------- Dude -- you won't hurt it. It just won't sound like a guitar amp. Unless you are using an amp simulator too. One reason they sound bad (normally) is an improper loading of the pickup by the preamp you plug into. If you use a standalone preamp it will work okay. At least enough to practice with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ears Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 I suggest a "GuitarPort" by Line6 for situations just like this. It allows you to play through your PC and is only $100. Check it out.. http://www.guitarport.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pauln Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Dude, you will hurt it. 1] The dynamic impact of the signal when you play an electric guitar is extreme - WAY more than recorded and engineered sources. It is loud enough to hear by plugging in headphones directly into the guitar jack without an amp. 2] Even the wimpiest of amps at low volume puts out a great amount of power into narrow bands (like single notes). A moderately loud guitar amp puts out WAY more than your HIFI - especially within these narrow bands. If you are used to listening to your guitar amp you will not be happy with the output through the HIFI until you get it up loud enough to hurt it. 3] You are showing good judgment asking the question. Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnyholiday Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 a good little modeling practice amp or knockout box for PC, you might get tuned in to some different sounds,the only crossover i would see, instrument amp to stereo gear ,would be in reverve, were you were running the signal into the instrument amp, such as a bass amp with a mixed input with the instrument input ,then it would be doing triple duty, bass amp , sub,an mixed signal for jamming along with tunes, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Yes, you CAN play guitar through your speakers - NOT A PROB! I thought I'd make a really good sound through my corner horns, but it's REALLY disapointing! The range of the guitar is too limited to push on either the low or the high end. I was bummed. The cheasy little Marshall amp I have sounds just as good, if not actually better. DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRBILL Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Almost any thread can cause a "seasoned citizen" to recall a story from yesteryear. So, here it is: I took a group from the parish in El Dorado, Arkansas for a tour of the Klipsch plant. They happened to comprise a "band" and they happened to have brought their instruments with them. And Paul happened to have an affinity for bright youngsters and insisted upon giving the tour himself instead of Bob Moers as scheduled. After we had seen everything, he invited the kids to bring their instruments into the old studio across the street. He helped them hook up their amps to some LaScalas and invited them to play. Tommy Byrd, the bassist, had a dedicated LaScala hooked up to a Fender Bassman. This speaker had a clear plexiglass side on the bass bin and had a "tag" on the woofer to measure excursion. (N.B: Remember the 1/16" rule.) They started to play. Paul looked at the excursion on the La Scala, uttered an oath that couldn't be printed here, and stomped out of the building to be seen no more by us! So, the answer is still "NO" don't do it. We are talking apples and oranges. DR BILL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Here's one: Back in high school and soon thereafter, I was in a band and the bass player used a cornerhorn (but not a Klipschorn- too heavy) turned around for his bass cabinet - he liked the "punch". DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codhead Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Back when I was young, I used to plug my Ovation Preacher into my 80W/Ch Kenwood integrated driving JBL studio monitors. Bought a cheap little 1/4" to dual RCA adapter at Radio Shack, and it worked great until I got a proper guitar amp (over a year later). Keep the volume sane, and you'll be just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 The line-out impendance from a guitar is the same impedance as any line out on stereo equipment. If you've ever plugged a CD player into a sound board you would realize that the output from the CD player practically maxes out the channel with the gain turned down all the way down. With a guitar you need to turn the gain up about half way...so we're talking like a 12dB difference here (and the guitar is the quieter one). If you're really concerned about breaking stuff, then just bust out a Direct Box (you should have one already if you already play live) and then get an adapter that goes straight from XLR to an unbalanced plug (don't use a transformer for this conversion). Essentially this will drop your output by 18dB, which will allow you to crank your guitar volume all the way up. This kind of a setup however isn't going to sound good (as has been mentioned) because guitar amps are big distortion boxes that convert the signal from the pickup into something that sounds like a guitar again. That's why line6 and some other manufactures have created pre-amps for guitars that you can essentially plug straight into without having to mic the actual amp (which greatly reduces distortion and ambient noise being picked up during a concert). For the record, the output from a CD player is also enough to drive a pair of headphones as well...I used to do it when verifying backwards patching so that I could send the line out from a cd player a good 150 feet to the stage. I just plugged my headphones into the floor jacks and you could hear it...not loud, but enough to hear over instruments playing on stage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psg Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Very interesting thread! With so many good answers on both sides!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott0527 Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Ok, let's recap... "Can I safely play guitar though my speakers?" Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes If I were you I'd go get one of those $39 Kustom chinese guitar amps until your good one comes back. Now that would be safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted June 23, 2005 Share Posted June 23, 2005 Yes, no, maybe... Depends also on style of guitar playing. Depends on how loud you want to play. Passive or active pickups? Active will put out a VERY hot signal, but you could still plug it into the stereo. EQ is way different on the two different preamp/amps. I've done it for years, but I don't do certain styles. It is a way to hear the guitar to be able to get some practice in while the amp is being fixed. Maybe just use common sense... I wouldn't play as loudly though my stereo as I do through my regular guitar amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazytubepower Posted June 24, 2005 Author Share Posted June 24, 2005 Well it doesnt matter i wasnt planning on doing it...just more of a maybe question...borrowed my friends extra 4x12 no worries then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spkrdctr Posted June 24, 2005 Share Posted June 24, 2005 ---------------- On 6/23/2005 7:09:59 PM scott0527 wrote: Ok, let's recap... "Can I safely play guitar though my speakers?" Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes If I were you I'd go get one of those $39 Kustom chinese guitar amps until your good one comes back. Now that would be safe. ---------------- The funny part is that most of the yes votes are from people with actual experience doing it. You would "think" they would have a lot more credibility in their answers. But, as usual on most Internet boards, you get a lot of advice that is all over the map. Just an observation. Seems like Dr. Who's advice would be the most relevant..... I don't know anything about it, but from all of Who's advice and the quality of that advice (meaning we agree on pretty much everything) he is a very credible poster. Well, I added yet anoher post to my tally. In a few months I will hit the 500 post mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted June 24, 2005 Share Posted June 24, 2005 ---------------- On 6/24/2005 7:04:34 AM Spkrdctr wrote: ---------------- On 6/23/2005 7:09:59 PM scott0527 wrote: Ok, let's recap... "Can I safely play guitar though my speakers?" Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes If I were you I'd go get one of those $39 Kustom chinese guitar amps until your good one comes back. Now that would be safe. ---------------- The funny part is that most of the yes votes are from people with actual experience doing it. You would "think" they would have a lot more credibility in their answers. But, as usual on most Internet boards, you get a lot of advice that is all over the map. Just an observation. Seems like Dr. Who's advice would be the most relevant..... I don't know anything about it, but from all of Who's advice and the quality of that advice (meaning we agree on pretty much everything) he is a very credible poster. Well, I added yet anoher post to my tally. In a few months I will hit the 500 post mark. ---------------- Well thanks for the kind words... I just wanted to mention though that the no voters are just as right too. Plugging a guitar into your system isn't always just plug and play which means there is a level of carefulness needed. Just about every yes or no answer here has been referencing different setups, which either work or don't work. The thing is if you somehow manage to clip an input anywhere in the signal path, this DC current now travels throughout the whole system...and we all know what DC through an amp does to speakers *sizzle sizzle*. So anyways, keep the volume down and you're fine. But as the nay sayers have already mentioned, it's still going to sound like crap, but just cuz it sounds bad doesn't always mean you're breaking something. The reason I said yes at the beginning is because there are ways to do it safely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masterngc Posted June 24, 2005 Share Posted June 24, 2005 You can, just use a di box if it isn't a guitar amp... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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